Questions & Answers
What is a Work Center?
A team centered on common goals and compensation tied to first quality through-put. An alternative to traditional hourly pay systems where employee pay is based on a base wage rate plus gain created from value added services in the form of units. Work Centers employ workers willing to take part in a gain sharing program.
What is gain sharing?
Gain sharing shares productivity gains with the workforce. This form of wage benefit is based on factors directly under a worker's control (i.e., productivity, quality and costs). Gains are measured and distributions are made weekly through a predetermined formula. Because these bonuses are directly tied to gains, the gain sharing plan creates a unique opportunity to reward both team and individual contribution.
What kinds of 'gains' are measured in a Work Center?
- Increases in first quality production with equal or less effort.
- Equal levels of first quality production with less effort.
- Improved on time delivery.
What is an example of a Work Center gain sharing formula?
Weekly gain in gross profit: A percentage of the margin created from the revenue produced by 'value priced' work minus the cost of hours worked at a base rate.
What can I gain from a gain sharing program?
You can make more money. Pay increases for individual and team productivity gains are on average 10 to 20% of your straight time and overtime wage paid weekly. The gain share portion is a variable piece of your pay and could be as low as 0 to as high as 50+% paid weekly.
What do I have to do to earn this increase?
Do your job right the first time each day and every day, help your teammates whenever possible and keep the line moving with first quality. To keep building higher and higher payouts, own the quality of your work, help peers with quality, report inefficiencies to supervision and participate in all improvement opportunities.
